I have been sitting around the past few days thinking about the future of the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) now that End Game is over.  The more I think about it, the more I am convinced that a Time Heist was a stupid ending to the Avengers movies and a bit of a cop-out by Marvel.  With the Spider-Man: Far From Home trailers all pointing towards alternate realities and the such, it seems as if we are going to need some sort of secondary Time Heist to fix the first Time Heist that broke reality.  Either that or Marvel has something more difficult to follow than time travel waiting for fans.

As I begin to rant and rave, let me make sure that I preface this by saying that Avengers: End Game was a great movie that was entertaining and original.  However, the more I think about the build up to the Time Heist, the more angry and confused I get.  What was the point of Ant Man & The Wasp?  To stick Scott Lang in the Quantum Zone so he could propose time travel to the Avengers to fix Thanos' snap?  Thankfully that rat stepped on the control pad in the Van that was in storage and I am forced to accept that this is all fine and dandy, and believable?  The whole plot of Ant Man & The Wasp could have been a short scene in Infinity War or End Game.  Even though I enjoyed Ant Man & The Wasp, Marvel wasted my time.  Also, Tony Stark insisted that everyone just be brought back to ensure the survival of his daughter...wouldn't base-lining everything back to the snap and undoing it be easier, cleaner, and actually solve the problem?  Half of society perpetuated itself for 5 years and now everyone is back and things are normal...how do those logistics work?

From a speculator's vantage, the unknown can be great.  I have been putting subtle hints to readers about the market overpaying of Amazing Spider-Man #212 which features the first appearance of Hydro-Man.  Prices for this book, at a 9.8 grade, has traveled from the reality of a $200 price range into an alternate reality of a $500 price range and has currently settled around $400 on the market.  This is a great book.  I had it in my collection since before the hype, but speculation about Far From Home has sent this comic on a pricing warpath.  So why do I say that Hydro-Man is a book that people are overpaying for?  Simple...if that is Hydro-Man in the trailer, what is his real impact on the MCU?  Mysterio appears to be the main baddie, and along with the Water monster (that may be Hydro-Man), there is also a Molten Man (sad for the overall character of Molten Man if Marvel wastes him like this) and a Rock-ish dude.  Splitting screen-time with other characters does not make your comic values pop as much as a speculator would hope for.

Either way, we are looking forward, ahead of Phase IV, and trying to determine what may be next.  What is the solution to the "multiverse" existing if that is the big problem?  Is it undoing the Time Heist and setting everything back to "normal" or something extremely more complex?  My greatest fear is that we have to go backwards again and rehash the past for nostalgia and dollars...I am sure someone at Marvel is pitching "Teenage Thanos" coming back and challenging the Avengers because of his angst.  I am ready for some new, inventive, fun, and exciting story-lines from Marvel and their movies...and make them worth my time.

What are your expectations for the MCU going forward.  Where are your speculator bets going?  Do you agree that the Time Heist was stupid?  Drop you comments and join the speculation!